A typical automobile includes communication systems with 30 or more modules that communicate electronically through several hundred (power, ground, signals per unit) of the thousand plus wires that make up a vehicle system. The total wire usage can be a mile or more in combined length. The probability of a failure or fault and the difficulty of finding the failure or fault increases with each wire and connection added to the communication system. Furthermore, the wires and connections are often difficult to reach due to integrated packaging in an effort to conceal the wires for aesthetic purposes.
One method of finding a fault in a communication system is to passively listen to the communication system and apply time domain reflectometry methodology on the signal to determine the fault location. The passive method can detect segment locations between modules in a modern automobile. For example, the source of the signal may broadcast infrequently or be located in different locations on the communication system depending on the installed options in the vehicle. The passive time domain reflectometry analysis thus is limited to obtain which module segment pairing is affected by location.
Accordingly, it is desirable to more reliably locate faults in a communication system. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.